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Lelia
Henry’s father was a Korean immigrant who came to the United States with his wife and son (Henry), settling in New York City and opening a grocery store. A disciplined man of few words, he was a hard worker who earned a master’s degree from one of the most respected schools in Korea. When he came to the United States, though, he essentially started over, working long hours to become the successful owner of multiple grocery stores throughout the city. He never talked about work at home, and his wife never asked him about his day. When Henry started asking about his father’s job one evening, his mother pulled him aside and told him not to talk about the grocery stores, explaining that such talk was beneath his father—after all, he had graduated from a highly respected institution in Korea and was only working as a grocer to give Henry a better life; instead of making him talk about the stores, then, Henry should simply keep his father company during his few hours of relaxation. Later, Henry’s mother died when he was only 11, but his father didn’t spend much time mourning their loss—instead, he announced that he and Henry would be moving to a wealthy suburban neighborhood north of the city. Henry hated the idea of this, but his father didn’t care: he thought it was what was best for Henry. Plus, moving into a bigger house in the suburbs was his image of what it meant to succeed in the United States. Not long after they moved, his father hired a young Korean woman—whom he and Henry called Ahjuhma—to care for the house, and though he never showed any feelings for her when Henry was still a child, Henry realized when he was in college that his father and Ahjuhma had become companions and romantic partners. He died shortly after Mitt, but Henry thinks about him often, especially because John Kwang reminds him of the old man.
Henry’s Father Quotes in Native Speaker
The Native Speaker quotes below are all either spoken by Henry’s Father or refer to Henry’s Father. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 4
Quotes
I know over the years my father and his friends got together less and less. Certainly, after my mother died, he didn’t seem to want to go to the gatherings anymore. But it wasn’t just him. They all got busier and wealthier and lived farther and farther apart. Like us, their families moved to big houses with big yards to tend on weekends, they owned fancy cars that needed washing and waxing. They joined their own neighborhood pool and tennis clubs and were making drinking friends with Americans. […] And in the end my father no longer belonged to any ggeh, he complained about all the disgraceful troubles that were now cropping up, people not paying on time or leaving too soon after their turn getting the money. In America, he said, it’s even hard to stay Korean.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 5
Quotes
“So what’s her name?” Lelia asked after a moment.
“I don’t know.”
“What?”
I told her that I didn’t know. That I had never known.
“What’s that you call her, then?” she said. “l thought that was her name. Your father calls her that, too.”
“It’s not her name,” I told her. “It’s not her name. It’s just a form of address.”
It was the truth. Lelia had great trouble accepting this stunning ignorance of mine.
Chapter 20
Quotes
If anything, I think my father would choose to see my deceptions in a rigidly practical light, as if they were similar to that daily survival he came to endure, the need to adapt, assume an advantageous shape.
My ugly immigrant’s truth, as was his, is that I have exploited my own. […] This forever is my burden to bear. […] Here is the sole talent I ever dared nurture. Here is all of my American education.
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Henry’s Father Quotes in Native Speaker
The Native Speaker quotes below are all either spoken by Henry’s Father or refer to Henry’s Father. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 4
Quotes
I know over the years my father and his friends got together less and less. Certainly, after my mother died, he didn’t seem to want to go to the gatherings anymore. But it wasn’t just him. They all got busier and wealthier and lived farther and farther apart. Like us, their families moved to big houses with big yards to tend on weekends, they owned fancy cars that needed washing and waxing. They joined their own neighborhood pool and tennis clubs and were making drinking friends with Americans. […] And in the end my father no longer belonged to any ggeh, he complained about all the disgraceful troubles that were now cropping up, people not paying on time or leaving too soon after their turn getting the money. In America, he said, it’s even hard to stay Korean.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 5
Quotes
“So what’s her name?” Lelia asked after a moment.
“I don’t know.”
“What?”
I told her that I didn’t know. That I had never known.
“What’s that you call her, then?” she said. “l thought that was her name. Your father calls her that, too.”
“It’s not her name,” I told her. “It’s not her name. It’s just a form of address.”
It was the truth. Lelia had great trouble accepting this stunning ignorance of mine.
Chapter 20
Quotes
If anything, I think my father would choose to see my deceptions in a rigidly practical light, as if they were similar to that daily survival he came to endure, the need to adapt, assume an advantageous shape.
My ugly immigrant’s truth, as was his, is that I have exploited my own. […] This forever is my burden to bear. […] Here is the sole talent I ever dared nurture. Here is all of my American education.
